TEHRAN- Iranian researchers have started a new study about the effects of pain on concentration and memory. 

The study aims to discover how pain affects the nervous cells, IRNA reported on Tuesday. 

The research is carried out in Shahid Beheshti University and is supported by the Iranian Vice-Presidency for Science and Technology. 

According to Professor Jalal Zaringhalam, the director of the research, the study aims to examine a specific cellular pathway that is associated with both pain and memory. 

Furthermore, he said, the effects of a new pain medicine on the brain will be examined; the new medicine is supposed to have a strong influence but little side effects and it has been produced in Shahid Beheshti University and is currently under laboratory testing.   

“In some diseases, patients struggle with pain for a long time, so we want to explore if this affects the memory cells,” said Zaringhalam. 

“Also, we want to know if the new medicine can protect the neurons and prevent usual negative effects that pain medicines have on the abilities of people.” He added. 

According to Science Daily, a new Canadian study has showed that chronic pain may distract the mind and hamper the memory-making process. 

The researchers in the University of Alberta believed that learning more about chronic pain's effects on mental skills such as memory may one day lead to new treatments. 

Their findings suggest that pain may disrupt the maintenance of the memory trace that is required to hold information for processing and to later retain it for storage in longer-term memory stores.

They add that it remains to be seen whether attention training can offset those memory problems.

SJ/MG